Reading

Posts tagged ‘ethics’

In my experience of the earthy path, we toss around some ideas all the time — words about the interconnectedness of things and the cycles that tie us all together (see my section on trees). When I was studying the connections between astrobiology and Communitarianism, I read What is Life? by Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan. Among many ideas suggested by the authors, one struck me as particularly relevant to earth spirituality: the concept that the biosphere itself can be considered an organism.

Backing up… the smallest form of life is a cell, complete with a barrier that distinguishes it from the rest of the world. Inside, organelles work together, fueling processes and facilitating its reproduction as a whole. Margulis and Sagan point out that current mitochondria (a particular organelle in a cell), originally independent, were absorbed long ago and now cannot exist outside the cell. Now think of your body as an organism. Your skin, like the cell membrane, delineates what counts as “you” — yet you are composed of many, many cells. In modern Western life, we have been taught to view ourselves as separate beings, our minds obediently in step with the Liberalism of Descartes and Rousseau. My professor, H.P. Steeves, wrote on these ideas, and suggests that perhaps Communitarianism (where we are constituted by our roles and relationships), could better explain the origin of life. This extends to the nature of life as manifested on Earth.

Communitarianism relates to some core earth religious ideas. It is not simply that other people are nice to have around – our interactions with those around us are the core of our identity, our being. Part of being earth religious, as I experience it, is recognizing our connection to the Earth, to the world around us. We are a part of Nature, whether we live in downtown L.A. or rural Indiana. This recognition winds its way through every concept, from spirals to holidays.

When Margulis and Sagan explain that, scientifically, the biosphere of the earth is considered an organism, this concept is realized. Like the mitochondria, they argue, each of us is a piece of a greater whole; lines, like a cell membrane, mark a separation of sorts, but not the boundaries that we have materialized through Liberalism. The atmosphere is our skin, the rocks our bones, and, like lungs, we cycle the air with plants.

We are one body.

With this information, perhaps we can fully embrace our identity as a communal being. Yes, like a cell, we can find a point of separation. But if we let these thoughts seep into our actions, into our minds and hearts, the social impact could shift us globally towards peace. We Liberal folks are bent on self-destruction through war, pollution, greed and cruelty. Every act against the Other is an act against ourselves. Those who shunt environmentalism aside as a fad or only for the granola, wage war while calling themselves “pro-life,” and/or feel free to poison produce with pesticides, do not work to see the whole.

Since we fail our own particular bodies — make them swell with junk food and harmful chemicals, fail to suppress those awful, vindictive thoughts that eventually creep in before the mirror, push ourselves to exhaustion for work, only propped up by caffeine – are we even capable?

Sometimes, one of my greatest challenges is to not see humanity as a cancer upon this earth.